Unforeseen Circumstance

Change of Heart

(Day 15)

By: Little Ucchan

I shouldn't have come.

The longer she walked down the corridors of Han'a High, the more that one thought was reinforced in her mind. Just what was she thinking?! She was still ill, her entire body weak from using her energy to put up that shield. Her wounds weren't even completely healed yet. And her talisman… the mysterious black rune that gave her strength… was dwindling in power, in desperate need for a break. But for how long? Could she defend herself against a demon attack if she suddenly couldn't use the Darkness Rune?

I shouldn't have come. Ryo must have told the other guys of her identity. Could she face them, now that they know she's been deceiving them?

It was easy in the beginning, she must admit. It was a simple matter to tell a lie when no one knew a thing about her. Even easier to play the role of an anti-social, bad-tempered girl from another country. Maybe speaking in Chinese would have made the performance more effective. And people could buy into the story that the reason why she acted as such was because she missed her family and friends. Her lie was everyone else's truth.

But she had made a mistake. She became friends with one of them.

Then a friend of another. An acquaintance of a few. A client of a dojo. A sparring partner of one. And the enemy of the Ronin warriors… Amazing how one thing could cause such a damaging ripple effect.

But… was making friends so bad?

Laura didn't know anymore. Didn't even know the underlying reason as to why she decided to attend school that day. If she was smart, she would have left. Just pack up and go. Leave this place behind her… But she was tired of running. And besides that…

Besides that… she kinda liked it here.

She forcefully shook her head, correcting that previous thought. Before, she liked it here. But now… Now that she lied… Betrayed them… What was left for her?

Nothing.

Stopping, Laura was about to let her feet take her away from here when someone had called out to her.

"Laura!"

She turned around to see Rowen Hashiba waving to her, signaling for her to wait where she was until he got over there. Besides him was Kento Rei Fuan, a boy she knew as Lady Sierra. But as Laura Kinoku, she believed she only saw him once before.

Laura didn't know what to do. Her mind told her to leave, to sever her ties with them completely and just disappear, but her body had decided on it's own not to move from that spot, her tired condition only offering the two a forced smile.

"Hey! Good morning!" he greeted rather cheerfully for someone who was usually dead at that time of day.

"Morning," she repeated, then nodded her head towards Kento, who did the same as well.

Seeing the exchange and realizing his mistake, Rowen quickly introduced his friend. "Oh. Laura, this is Kento." Rubbing the back of his head and giving them both a slight bow, he apologized. "Sorry. You guys haven't met before, huh?"

"Not really," Laura replied quietly. Looking at Kento, she added, "I've seen you around before, though."

"Yeah, me too." He then did a peculiar thing and tilted his head to the side, almost as if he was confused about something.

Rowen watched Kento as he scratched the back of his head, looking at Laura for a bit longer before he spoke again. And the boy's words made Rowen go wide-eyed with shock.

"You know, you don't seem as vicious as everyone says you are," Kento said rather thoughtfully, peering into her eyes with his hand underneath his chin. "Why's that?"

"K-Kento!!" Rowen roughly grabbed his shoulder and yanked him back, dreading Laura's reaction to that little comment when he noticed her expression. That being that there was none.

Rowen didn't realize that at the time of Kento's rather rude statement, Laura was staring past them at a boy who had stopped at the top of the staircase. Ryo looked back at her, and both of them gazed at each other, the world stopping for an indefinable moment. Then Ryo turned away, walking down the stairs and not looking back. Cye, who was with him, paused for a moment to give Laura an apologetic shrug, the gesture saying that he didn't know what was wrong with him. Smiling softly at her, he followed Ryo to their next class.

"Laura?"

The soft call brought the girl out of her daze, her mind focusing back on the two teenagers in front of her. With a tired sigh, she excused herself, leaving Rowen and Kento standing there, confused.

***

Rushing down the hall towards the cafeteria, Cye stuffed his books hastily into his bag. He had been held back, his class extending pass the normal time in order to cover more material for tomorrow's test. Although he didn't exactly mind, Cye hadn't brought with him a lunch, like he normally did. Meaning that he had to wait in line at the cafeteria for his food. And he knew all too well how long that could take.

Almost at a sprint now, Cye quickly zoomed pass the library when he skidded to a halt, back tracking to see if his eyes really saw what they did. Sage…? In the library?! You've got to be kidding me!! Normally, students would go in there to study during their free time. Cye himself would often go there to do homework or work on a project. Rowen would usually be in there as well. But Sage? And right at the start of lunch? Something was up.

Walking quietly into the library, Cye made his way to his friend's table, setting his book bag down and sitting across from him. "Hey."

Sage looked up at the greeting and returned it with a slight nod. Then he was back in his book, studying.

Cye leaned forward to get a look at what subject he was reading. Chemistry. At that moment, he felt a little embarrassed for thinking something was wrong. He had heard about that test from a few of his underclassman friends. And he couldn't blame Sage for wanting to review the material, remembering how this past week has been for him. With demons, stolen armors, and one-on-one duels… who had time to think about school?

He was about to leave him in peace when Cye had caught sight of Sage's notebook. His geometry notebook. Blinking twice and then looking back at his open book, he realized that it was still on the first page of the chapter! Now, how long has Sage been here? Cye was sure that class got out ten minutes ago.

Leaning on the table and peering up into his face, he realized that the boy's eyes weren't moving to read the book at all, instead staring blankly at the pages in front of him.

He couldn't help but sigh to himself as he sat back into his seat. First Ryo. Then Laura. And now Sage. Just what was with everyone today?

"What's on your mind?" Cye asked, pulling the blonde away from his reverie in order to talk to him. "I doubt it's chemistry."

He chuckled slightly, closing his book and reclining back into the wooden chair. "And here I thought Rowen was the observant one."

Cye laughed as well. "It wasn't that hard to figure out." Resting his elbows on top of the table he asked, "So what's bothering you?"

Sage hesitated in speaking, his eyes momentarily flickering downward before meeting Cye's gaze again. "…I don't know."

"Sage…"

"I'm serious, Cye. I've just been getting this weird vibe ever since I got to school today."

"A vibe?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "It's an abnormal amount of energy along the lines of how our auras act. Except I just can't place my finger on it."

"But you think it's in the school?" Cye asked, worried about what Sage has been sensing. "If it is, shouldn't we do something? I mean, what if it's—"

"It's not a demon," Sage assured him. "The aura's not malicious. But…"

"Hey so this is where you guys are!"

Kento strolled into the library, waving at the two of them cheerfully. "I've been looking all over for you!"

Several teenagers immediately looked at the boy and the librarian gave Kento a nasty glare before he realized where he was and piped down.

"Nice way to make an entrance," Sage commented dryly.

Kento gracefully ignored that remark, turning around one of the chairs at the table and straddling the seat. "Sage, I gotta ask ya a question," he stated once he was comfortable.

The blonde raised a quizzical brow. "A question?"

"Mm hm," he nodded. "Tell me, what's up with Laura?"

"Laura?" Sage asked, surprised. "How the hell would I know? I'm not close to her."

"Yeah, but you seem to run into her more times that anyone else."

Sage only rolled his eyes, already aware that Kento was doing this purely on a whim. "Go ask Ryo. If there was anything wrong, she'd tell him. Not me."

"Actually Ryo wouldn't know about it," Cye reported. "He's been avoiding her all this morning."

Now this caught Sage's interest. "He's been what?"

"Avoiding her," he repeated. "He won't talk to me about it, though."

"Weird," Kento cried. "And Laura's been acting really spacey today. I mean, I wouldn't really know since I didn't really meet her face to face till today, but judging from Rowen's reaction…"

"Kento, why are you suddenly asking about Laura?" Cye questioned, inclining his head towards his companion. "I mean, this topic of yours is completely random."

"Cause I'm bored Cye! Rowen's off doing some physics project. Ryo, although he is better than the other day, is still acting weird. And you two weren't at the cafeteria to eat my lunch with! Besides that, we're at a complete standstill with the Lady Sierra thing. I have absolutely nothing to do. So here I find you guys talking about whatever and I decide to add my own flare into the conversation by bugging Sage about Laura." He smiled triumphantly at Cye's surprised look at his rather oddball excuse. "It's so much fun because he hates the topic. Ain't that right Sage?"

Kento blinked, staring at the now empty seat in front of him. "Sage?"

"Where'd he go?"

***

He had a gut feeling. Sage couldn't explain it as he roamed through the empty hallways, searching. He just had a feeling about it.

Coming to one of the large glass windows that overlooked the open square in front of the school, Sage looked around with his eyes, try to see if he could find her from his vantage point. So far, nothing. And lunch was almost over.

Well, looks like I have no choice. Backing away from the window, he took in a deep breath. Sage had been trying to avoid doing this all day, instead walking around the school, hoping he'd make visual contact with that aura in order to find out who it was coming from. But now, it looked like he had to actively search for it with his senses.

Concentrating, he let his 'other sight' take over his senses. But it only lasted for a few seconds before he fell back onto a wall, rubbing his temples and cringing at the throbbing sensation that was pounding against his brain. Shit! Sage held his hand over his eyes, acting as a protective visor against the brightness of the light around him. He couldn't maintain his powers. Not in his condition.

Rowen's right. If I were to get into a fight right now, I'd die. Breathing in deeply to force down his dizziness, Sage slowly pushed himself off the wall. He looked outside the window again, and to his dismay found out that he couldn't sense anyone's aura at all!

"Oh great," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. I just blew out my senses.

Maybe he needed to cool down for a bit. Sage was about to walk back to the library when a solitary figure not too far ahead of him caught his attention.

It was Laura.

Well isn't this just perfect, he thought ironically before taking a deep breath and approaching the girl.

Laura waited, staring at the blonde haired boy that was making his way towards her. Although her mind was telling her this was not the person she needed to see right now, she didn't care, only aware of how it was slowly getting harder to breathe properly, how her forehead was burning, and how she had to blink every now and then in order to see clearly. The fever was taking full advantage of her fatigue.

Please… no argument. No conflict… Just for today.

She looked up at Sage when he stopped in front of her. "You okay?"

Laura found it rather uncharacteristic of him to ask her that and would have been completely awe struck or have some witty remark up her sleeve if it were any other day. But all she could do as a reply was to downcast her eyes, continuing to breathe slowly out of her mouth.

"I'm fine," she lied, although it wasn't a very good one.

"Are you sick?" he persisted, his voice betraying a hint of concern. "You shouldn't be here if you're ill. Maybe it'd be best if—"

"I don't need a lecture, Sage," Laura said tiredly, none of that forceful ring she'd always use present in her voice. "I'm fine."

Laura had moved to get around him, and he had actually let her pass. That was just a moment before she staggered unsteadily on her feet and fell backward. A strong set of arms caught her before she blacked out completely.

***

"Well, she should be alright for now," Mrs. Kyo, the school nurse, informed him, taking off the damp face towel from Laura's forehead and wringing it out over a basin of cool water. "I can't believe she made it this far in her condition!"

Sage mutely nodded, keeping his eyes on the still form that laid on the linen-covered bed, resting quietly.

"Where did you find her?"

"In the hallway. She passed out in front of me."

"Hm. It was fortunate that you were there, Sage. If she had remained lying there all through the lunch period, we might have had to send her to the hospital."

"What's wrong with her, Kyo-san?" he asked, looking up at the woman.

"High fever," she informed him. "Unattended, of course. It wouldn't have gotten so bad if she had known about it. But it looks like she wasn't aware of how seriously ill she was."

"Anything I can do?"

She smiled warmly at him. "No, you've done enough. I'll take over from here."

"Kyo-san!!!"

The nurse shot up from her seat in alarm when a student had suddenly burst into the infirmary, panting like crazy.

"What is it?" she demanded.

"Kyo-san! We have an emergency at the gym!" the girl, a T.A. from the class, had cried. "One of the underclassmen tripped and slammed his head against the wall! He's bleeding really badly!!"

"I'm on my way!" Rushing into the other room and grabbing the first aid kit, Mrs. Kyo rushed out the door, stopping for a brief moment to talk to Sage. "Actually, stay here till I get back. Make sure her fever stays down, and if there's any problem, Ms. Rheas is in the classroom down the hall. " With those parting instructions, she was gone.

Staring out at the door for a moment longer, Sage slowly rose from his seat, taking in his hands the face towel Mrs. Kyo had left behind. Dipping it into the basin, he twisted it so the cloth would only be moist and placed it over Laura's forehead. He remained standing there looking down at her, his mind absently wandering around. He hadn't expect her to be this bad.

Although his senses were dulled at the time, Sage could tell by Laura's movements and outward appearance that something was wrong. Maybe it was a headache, or that she had been sick over the weekend and was just now recovering. He never thought that she'd pass out. And when that had happened, his mind had gone into a panic. All alone with an unconscious girl in his arms, not knowing what had caused it or what to do next and not even able to use his healing abilities because of his tired condition… The situation had shocked him so badly that he had just sat there for a moment, unmoving, before he let instinct take over and rushed her to the infirmary.

And now, here he was. Alone again. Taking care of her by himself. Sage unconsciously brushed back a stray bang that had fallen onto her face. He didn't know what he was doing, in two categories. First of all, he didn't know how to care for someone when they were sick. That was the immediate concern on his mind. But there was something else, nagging him quietly from behind. A feeling of being out of place. That this whole scene shouldn't be happening… That he wasn't supposed to be here. With her.

But why? The reason was there. He felt it inside. But right when it was in his reach, it'd abruptly pull away from him. And he'd be lost again, the uncomfortable feeling looming around him, but no reason to explain it.

He touched Laura's cheek with the back of his hand, feeling her temperature. Still a bit warm. Sitting back into his seat and crossing his arms over his chest, Sage watched over her in silence.

***

"Father!!" a girl of ten screamed out frantically, fighting the against the arms that were pulling her back, restraining her. Keeping her from her father.

"No!! Let go!" Her face was stained with tears and dust as she struggled to pull out of his grip. "Let go!! I have to help him!!"

"We have to leave!!" the older man had yelled over the roaring flames, its fiery tirade engulfing the village and staining it a bright burning red. "Sasa!"

"No! I won't!!"

She then screamed in surprise when he picked her up off of the floor and carried her away. "No! Put me down!!" she shrieked, kicking and screaming, digging her fingers into his arms, anything to force him to release her. "Let go!! I have to help him!!"

But he would not let go, and she was helpless to stop him.

With one last desperate cry, she screamed. "FATHER!!!!!!"

Laura sat up with a start, her breath coming out as short gasps of air as the intensity of her dream lingered tauntingly in her mind. She slowly shut her eyes, trying to force out the images that were burned permanently into her memory. Father… She hasn't dreamt about the past for a long time. Why is she starting now?

"Oh, you're awake."

She turned at the sound of someone else's voice in the room, a pleasant smile greeting her as a woman around her early thirties stepped into the main room of the infirmary. "How do you feel?" she asked, winding up the remaining end of a bandage roll. "You've been out for quite a bit."

"I feel a bit light headed," was her response.

"Really?" A few moments later, Mrs. Kyo had walked up to Laura's bedside and placed her hand on the girl's forehead. "Well, your fever's gone down. You'll be fine once you've gotten some rest." The woman then gave her a knowing grin. "Shame on you for coming to school today."

She flushed slightly, looking down on her bed sheets. "Um, thank you for taking care of me."

"Actually, a student was the one who was watching over you."

Laura blinked. "A student?"

Mrs. Kyo nodded. "I had an emergency to attend to in the gym. A boy hurt his head during a basketball game and had to be sent to the hospital for stitches. So I had him stay with you and make sure your fever went down." She smiled at the girl's confused expression. "He's really sweet. Was in here for almost an hour, I think."

"…Who was it?" she asked, even though she most likely knew the answer.

"Sage Date," Mrs. Kyo replied. "Do you know him?"

"Sorta," Laura said, but was already distracted in her thoughts. He stayed? And he was the one who caught her too. She remembered that. So… he brought me here and watched over me?

"I'm going to send you home early," Mrs. Kyo informed her, cutting into her musings. "Is there anyone you know who can pick you up right now?"

She shook her head.

"How about a student?" she suggested. "I can pull someone out of class to walk you home."

Laura suddenly smiled when she looked at the time, just remembering something. "Yeah. I know someone."

***

"Ugh. This class is gonna stink," Kento sulked as he trudged along to his next class… chemistry. "Sage did you study?"

"I looked at it." He frowned to himself. But not long enough to do me any good.

Kento let out an exaggerated sigh, pouting about his dire situation. Then a sudden idea made him perk up immediately. "Hey! If Sensei suffered from a stroke, then we won't have to take the test today! Oh I hope I hope I hope I hope…"

"Hope for something else," someone had interrupted him. "Like passing this exam."

The boy cringed at Sensei Kiran's remark as several students who had heard the exchange tried to hold in their laughter. The forty-two year old science instructor was standing in front of the door to his class room, test papers in hand. Kento stopped at the door and gave his sensei his best 'you know you're my favorite teacher' smile in an attempt to correct that little mistake he had made.

It didn't work.

"Inside."

Kento's face fell as he began to sulk even further, dragging his feet across the floor as he entered the room. Sage only shook his head in mild amusement as he stepped through the door. "Kento, you're hopeless."

"Shut up!!" came the almost reflexive reply as the class started to laugh.

"Settle down," Mr. Kiran ordered, waiting for the remainder of the class to take their seats. Sage barely sat down when the P.A. system went on.

Teachers, excuse this interruption, the announcement began. Sage Date, please report to the front office. Thank you.

A bit confused, he looked up at Mr. Kiran who only nodded his head. "You may go, Sage."

"Thanks, Sensei," he bowed, picking up his bag as he rose from his seat. From the corner of his eye, he could see Kento shooting him a nasty glare.

"Lucky bastard," he heard him mutter under his breath. Sage only smiled smugly at his companion, sticking out his tongue mockingly before he exited the room.

"Okay, now as for the rest of you," Mr. Kiran began. "Everything off your desk besides a pen. You have 50 minutes to complete the exam."

Numerous groans echoed throughout the classroom. Kento banged his head against his desk in defeat.

***

Although he was rather pleased that he had skipped out on today's exam, Sage was wondering exactly why he was being called to the front office. From what he knew, he didn't have any reason to go there. Not unless something happened at home. That last thought wasn't very comforting.

Unfortunately, the anxiety that he had begun to felt as he approached his destination only intensified with the added mix of confusion in his eyes. But not for the reason he had first thought.

Mrs. Kyo was standing by the front door of the office. Right next to her was Laura Kinoku.

He didn't speak for an uncertain moment, his gaze shifting from Laura, then to Mrs. Kyo, and then back to Laura again. What was this about?

"Sage. Sorry to pull you out of class," the head nurse began, bowing slightly to show she knew that this might be an inconvenience for him. "But do you think you could walk Laura home? I didn't want her to leave without someone going with her."

He had opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it when he found he didn't know what to say, instead looking at Laura again. The girl had lowered her head slightly at his stare, but she still kept her eyes locked on his, an emotion that he couldn't decipher as of yet flickering behind those hazel eyes.

"Uh… sure," he said after a moment. "I don't mind."

Sage thought he saw the corners of her mouth move up into a faint smile. But surely he must have been imagining it.

That's what he told himself as he and Laura walked silently side by side to the apartment building where she lived. He hadn't seen her smile. No way would she want him to walk her home. Kyo-san must have picked him to go since he helped her out earlier. That's all.

Then again, casting a quick glance at the girl next to him, Laura has been acting sort of strange lately. Maybe it was the truce they had called on each other on Thursday. Both of them have been a lot more tolerant of each other since then, and he actually didn't mind as much when she became his sparring partner. But… she's been sort of… amiable as of late, aside from this morning. And he didn't know why. Baka… he sighed. People don't need a reason to be nice. But with Laura… he just wasn't so sure.

She stopped for a second and sneezed, rubbing her hands against her arms to drive away the goose bumps that had suddenly appeared on her skin. Sage kept watching her out of the corner of his eyes, noting that she was only wearing the school vest over her blouse and skirt, not the best outfit to keep someone warm. After a moment, he stopped to slide off his jacket.

Laura was more than a bit surprised when Sage outstretched his hand to give her his jacket. It was way out of character. But, how well did she know him actually?

"C'mon, take it," he insisted when she didn't move to comply. "You'll only get worse if you don't."

He was half expecting her to snub him for even thinking about offering her help, but instead she quietly took the jacket from his hand and wrapped it around her shoulders for warmth. And then they continued walking.

Argh! The silence was killing him!! It felt so weird walking with her like this, and that feeling of misplacement that he had experienced earlier had come back in full. Was he just uncomfortable being with this girl who, in his opinion, did a complete 180 and became an entirely different person over the course of a few days? Even the side of her he saw in the dojo on Saturday was more 'Laura' than how she was acting now. It was bothering him.

They were coming up her apartment when Laura spoke.

"Sorry."

Sage didn't say anything, but he stopped walking just about the same time she did, turning to her in bewilderment. Sorry?

Her back was to him, concealing any emotion she might have had at the moment. But her words ringed with a sort of sadness that he had only heard once before. "I… sorely misjudged you, Sage… You're not like most pretty boys."

He was… well, surprised. But that emotion seemed to be common as of recently. She then surprised him even more with her next sentence.

"I could debate that you're worse."

The statement had caught him off guard, indignation starting to show on his face when suddenly Laura whirled on her heels, giving him a genuine smile for the first time. "But I could also debate… that you're better."

The odd mix of sweet mischief present in her eyes left him speechless, something that she had a knack for, and he couldn't make his mind think of anything else as she walked through the front door except that, at that moment, she was beautiful. And once she was out of sight and Sage had a few more minutes to himself, he was again dumbstruck, but for a different reason. This being that he had actually liked her for that one moment.

He placed a hand on his hip and raked his fingers through his hair. Man, I don't get her, he sighed to himself, shaking his head. And somewhere up on the fourth floor of the building, one other person agreed.

Resting her arms on the windowsill and peering through the glass down at him, Laura smiled to herself. He looks confused. She couldn't really blame him. Her actions today were puzzling to say the least, even to her. I've got to stop acting on the whim of things. But she felt that what she did was alright. She needed to tell him at some point that her opinion of him had changed. When… she didn't know. But it had changed. Laura still didn't like his quick-witted nature or that smug superiority she'd see in him. But that was a part of his personality, not a false front that he may be trying to put up. And that, she could deal with.

Watching as Sage finally left to go home, she suddenly rolled her eyes, leaning against the wall with a sigh. I haven't been myself all day. Maybe I just need some rest. Laura sat up from the floor, the movement making the jacket that was wrapped around her shoulders fall onto the carpet.

"Damn," Laura swore softly, picking up Sage's jacket. I forgot to give it back to him.

Taking out a coat from the closet, she slipped it over her uniform and gently folded the black blazer over her arm. Walking out of her apartment and closing the door behind her, Laura was in the middle of locking it when the apartment door next to her opened as well.

"Oh, Laura," Ms. Yukizaro greeted her in surprise. "You're back from school early today."

"Yeah, something came up. Are you just leaving right now?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry I haven't picked up Sammy yet," she apologized. "I'm running a little late and I have a doctor's appointment in an hour or so."

"Don't worry about it. Actually, you should go to your appointment. I'll pick up Kei and Sammy today."

"Oh no, you don't have to," Ms. Yukizaro tried to protest, but Laura cut her off with a smile.

"It's alright, I'm going out anyway. You just hurry. I'll take care of her while you're gone."

"Domo arigato," she bowed gratefully before running down the hall.

Laura remained by her door for a few minutes, wondering if it was okay for her to be watching over someone else's child. She was a potential threat to everyone around her. What gave her the right to care for another living being? That's when she noticed that Ms. Yukizaro's door was slightly ajar, the woman having had forgotten to lock her door in her rush. A fond smile came to her lips as she turned the lock from the inside and closed her neighbor's door, testing the knob to see if it locked properly. She could relate to Ms. Yukizaro. The single mother was her sister-in-arms. And although her reality was much different than hers, Laura knew how hard it was to care for someone so young with no one around to help you. Sad reality that it was.

Stop that, she told herself, not needing to depress herself any further. Maybe a nice walk is what I really need. Taking the elevator down to the lobby floor, Laura pulled her coat more securely around her as she exited the building, not away that a pair of dark yellow eyes was watching her.

There she is… the Empress of Darkness herself. The demon licked his lips in delight. This will be fun.

***

"I'm home!" Sage called into the house, leaning one hand against the wall as he took off his shoes.

"You're back early," Grandfather Date commented as he stepped out into the entrance hall.

"I had to walk Laura home."

"Oh?" the old man's eyebrows arched slightly as he sipped his cup of tea.

"Mm hm," he nodded once he got off his other shoe. "She was sick and was excused from the rest of her classes. Kyo-san asked me to go with her."

"Well that was very nice of you," he said. "Is she alright?"

"Better than this morning."

"Well, keep me posted on her condition," Grandfather Date told him, returning to the living room. "I want to know when she'd be well enough to show you ittou youjutsu."

Sage immediately stiffened. "Ittou… youjutsu?"

"Yes," came his reply from the other room. "Actually, I was hoping that she'd use it during your match last Saturday. But instead she had settled for the style she'd been studying in China, which centered more on using the sword as a distraction and the rest of the body as the choice weapon for attacks. Although this was an affective means of combat during your match, I had wished to see a traditional battle between swords like the one I had experienced when I had dueled with her myself. It's remarkable. Did you know that she mastered the art with her left hand when she's naturally right --- Sage, where are you going?"

The boy had already put his shoes back on and was almost out the door when Grandfather Date walked back into the entrance hall. "Sorry to rush out like this, Ojiisama," he apologized, bowing slightly. "But I just remembered something I left behind at school. I'll be back in a little while."

Sage had ran out the door before his grandfather could say another word.

I don't believe this, he cursed mentally. She was right in front of him this whole time! "Shit!" Sage cried out, coming to a stop in the middle of the sidewalk, panting from his sudden run. He was confused. He was so confused…

Laura was Lady Sierra. So all that time, all those run-ins with the mysterious ninja… it was her. The rude but playfully troublesome girl he saw everyday at school. The one he had almost daily fights with. The one he spent his afternoons in detention with. The one girl that, for the life of him, he could not figure out. And now, he had a new, much deeper connection with her.

Maya's Darkness Rune.

She's part of the dream I've been seeing. But how? Why? Just what was going on? Discovering that one revelation had sent his head reeling. And he didn't know what to do, or where to start.

Calm down Sage. Just think for a moment. He forced himself to take in a few deep breaths of air. Right now, what did he have to deal with? The others obviously didn't know about it, but…

"…He's been avoiding her all this morning… won't talk to me about it, though."

"Weird. And Laura's been acting really spacey today…"

His conversation with Cye and Kento suddenly drifted back to him. Ryo… He knew. Wildfire knew since Saturday. So that's why…

That's why he's been acting the way he has… Because he was the one that almost killed her.

Oh no. Sage could only imagine what kind of thoughts had been running through his leader's mind over the weekend. Depression. Self loathing. Helplessness. Very common emotions in 'Ryo guilt trips.' And this latest one topped them all. If I know Ryo, he wants to apologize but can't do it. And if Sage left him alone to deal with this, they'd never get anywhere. The Ronin warriors were at a stalemate on the Lady Sierra issue up till now. And if he could get Ryo to clear things up with Laura, then everything else they were having problems with could be much easier to solve… in theory, at least. He didn't know what good any of this would do. But it was a start. Better than doing nothing.

***

An invisible cloud of remorse and guilt hung thick in the air around the Ronin leader as he cursed the skies above him, walking drearily home. I just had to look down… I just had to walk away. He kicked at a stone on the sidewalk, watching as it tumbled drunkenly across the pavement. I blew it.

Ryo knew that there were more pressing matters he had to deal with, like the fact that three of his friends armors were still missing, Sage seeing visions of an unknown world, and demons were running around untamed in the Mortal realm. Not to mention that he seemed to be falling in love with a demon-girl. But no. He couldn't focus. All those things were so far away from him right now, none of them able to grab his attention in the slightest, his mind completely occupied with one single girl.

He gritted his teeth in obvious anger. "Sucks to be me."

"Got that right."

Ryo looked to his side to find Sage there, walking with him. "So how long are you going to mope?" the blonde asked, keeping his eyes ahead of him. "God knows it's not doing you any good."

"Just let me be, Sage," Ryo brushed him off. "I got a lot of my mind right now."

"You're not the only one." He let the silence come in between them for a little while longer before speaking again. "I know Lady Sierra and Laura are one in the same. You don't have to hide it from me."

The reaction on Ryo's face was immediate, displaying the surprise he felt when he heard. But soon, his eyes fell downwards to his feet, his brooding nature coming around again. "What should I do?"

"I thought it was obvious." Ryo looked at his friend, who only returned his gaze. "We need to talk to her… You need to talk to her. That's the only thing we can do right now."

"…"

"So," Sage began after a brief pause. "Are we going or not?"

With a slight smile, Ryo nodded. "Yeah. Let's go."

***

She was tense the whole way back. Walking both Sammy and her friend Kei back to the apartment from school, Laura couldn't shake this undeniable feeling that something was going to happen. And she had a good idea as to what that something was. Damn it. A battle can't happen now! She wasn't ready.

Stopping at the front entrance to the main lobby of the building, Laura stopped, her eyes roving around, trying to spot the danger she knew was lurking nearby.

"Oneesan?" Sammy tugged at the hem of her sister's coat, looking up at the girl worriedly. "Oneesan, what's wrong?"

She forced a smile, kneeling down next to the two youngsters and placing an arm around each of them. "Nothing. You guys go ahead to the apartment, okay. Sammy, you know the way right?"

"Nee-san? Where are you going?" Kei, the quieter of the two girls, asked softly.

"Nowhere," she replied, getting up from the floor and patting her on the head. "I'm just going to get the mail. You two wait for me inside."

"…Kay," Sammy nodded quite reluctantly, pulling on the strap of her book bag as she walked to the elevator with Kei.

Once she was certain that they were gone, Laura slowly stepped outside into the courtyard. Eyes set and lips pulled into a tight line, she yelled, "Come on out, demon! I know you're here!"

But all that moved in front of her was the eerie rustling of the leaves, swaying on the tree branches. She kept her eyes open, her senses, as much as she couldn't concentrate right now, probing the area as best as she could for any shift in the air.

Nothing.

She took in a sharp breath, feeling the currents sway unsteadily around her, feeling the presence of a demon portal just newly being opened. It was here. It was coming. But she couldn't see it. She didn't know where the gate was. Then out of nowhere, in the yawning blackness of a shade of trees, a shower of black energy darts came shooting at her.

***

Ryo had stopped abruptly in his walk, suddenly feeling cold all over, his grip on his book bag feeling numb and shaky. He felt something. And when he looked at Sage, Ryo knew he had sensed it as well. Demon…

Both Ronins were already running towards Laura's apartment. Clad in their sub armors, they only hope that they'd get there in time.

***

"Aaahhh!!!" Laura cried out as the force of her back slamming into the wall sent waves of pain traveling down her spinal cord. She gritted her teeth, forcing her feet to move as a second barrage of energy darts came screeching through the air. She dodged to the right, rolling on the ground and moving unsteadily to her feet when another bombardment streamed towards her. Unable to get out of the way, Laura shot her hand forward, pulling on what little strength she had left to erect a barrier, but the shield wasn't strong enough to take the full front of the blast, the impact sending her flying backwards. She was thrown against another wall, slumping down to the ground as that second crash made her head surge in pain. Chest heaving shakily, she tried to get back on her feet as the demon smugly made his way towards her.

Is this the best you've got!! he cried tauntingly, grabbing her by the throat and brutally throwing her against the ground. I'd expect more from the one who calls herself, 'Lady Sierra'.

"Shut up," Laura hissed through clenched teeth, slowly rising to her feet. "What would you know about my power… You haven't seen nothing yet."

Then show me, the demon demanded. Show me the strength of your Rune.

At once, Laura grabbed the rune around her neck, pulling it off its chain and raising her closed fist into the air. "Darkness Rune…" she whispered softly, her voice echoing as she called upon that which gave her strength. "ENERGIZE!!!"

…

Nothing came.

She gasped, her entire body frozen, terror-stricken when the transformation didn't take place. All the color drained out of her skin as the weight of her situation sank in. There wasn't enough energy left in the talisman to initiate the transformation. She couldn't use the rune. Oh God…

The demon was laughing now. Was that it? Was that all the 'great' Lady Sierra had to offer? he asked mockingly, the four extremely long horns that arched across his chest from each of his shoulders shifting upwards. Each sharp end of the horns was directed towards Laura's paralyzed form. There's no use in fighting anymore. Just accept your fate and DIE!!

All four of them shot out of his shoulders like snakes making its way to its prey, moving like lightning with pointed spearheads being thrown at its target. Laura was only able to blink when they were already upon her, mere seconds away from piercing through her flesh when she felt something hit her from the side. A red blur scooped her up in his arms and a lock of black hair brushed by her face before Laura realized that she was standing almost ten meters away from where she once stood. And right besides her, with a protective arm laced around her waist, was Ryo Sanada.

"R-Ryo."

"You okay?" he asked in turn. She could only nod at him.

"My, aren't we popular?" The teasing remark came from behind. Sage Date, also in his sub armor, couldn't resist. "But I don't think he's your type."

Laura would have popped him one for the implied suggestion, but the truth was she was happy to see both of them. Having them here had put her at ease and an odd feeling of reassurance had washed over her.

Retracting the large tentacles back into his shoulders, the demon flexed the razor sharp horns before closing them over his chest. He glared malevolently at the two newcomers that had come between him and his prey, eyeing them with his slit-shaped pupils. The deep throated growled that had emitted from the demon's throat had made each of the three teenagers tense, making them step back a bit.

"Looks like you got him mad," Sage commented lightly, which made Ryo smile.

"Well, I guess I'm the one who has to fight him, then." Without so much as a decent warning, Ryo had quietly pushed Laura in Sage's direction. But being as tired as she was, losing Ryo's support and having him shove her in a different direction didn't do well on her balance, and instead of moving next to Sage, Laura sort of fell into him. An act that quickly made both of them uncomfortable.

She quickly stood herself upright as he simultaneously backed away, both looking at each other for an embarrassing moment before Ryo broke in.

"Sage, take care of her," he ordered.

"But…"

"Laura's injured," he cut off his protest. "If anything happens, you need to protect her."

So he says. But Sage knew the real reason as to why he was suddenly put on guard duty. Damn it Ryo! I can still fight, regardless of what you think. But his leader was convinced otherwise. "Stay with her, alright?"

He fixed the blonde with a stern glare when he didn't reply. "Alright?"

With a disdainful frown, Sage nodded once. "Got it."

Nodding back to him, Ryo stepped forward and away from his friends, glaring at the demon with fierce tiger blue eyes. His enemy only returned his glare with an evil smile, placing a hand on top of the hard iron cast that encased his right forearm. Ryo took note of the small holes at the front of the contraption, guessing that to be where those energy darts he saw littered across the courtyard came from. His eyes then came to rest on the almost four-inch thick horns protecting the demon's chest, two on each shoulder crossing over one another to form a giant X. Another weapon he had to look out for. He shifted his weight, circling to the left, the demon following the boy's lead.

Ryo's palms were sweating beneath his sub armor, a few beads of sweat coming down at the side of his face. His first battle with a demon and he was nervous. Cool it Ryo. Just cool it. But what was distracting him the most was this tattoo on the demon's left bicep. Some hidden concept behind it was drawing his attention to the oddly curved shaped that was literally burned into the monster's flesh, the mark resembling that of the number two, if he tilted his head to the right. Not that he was going to do that right now, for the aura that surrounded the demon gave him a cold chill. Something was different about this one.

Sage was thinking the exact same thing, his eyes concentrating on the tattoo on the demon's shoulder. Do all demons wear that mark? He didn't recall the demons in his dreams to have them. And so far, none of the other guys reported seeing something like that. Even Laura, who's been demon hunting for practically all her life, didn't seem to recognize the tattoo. Actually she didn't seem to be paying attention to the demon at all.

Ryo… She couldn't believe it. Ryo… why? Why are you doing this? The battle doesn't concern him. He didn't have to fight but yet he and Sage… They came rushing here to help me… She chewed on her upper lip, flipping the talisman over and over again in her hand. They came to save me… just like…

Just like her clan. Her family. Her mentor. Her father… All of them… came to help her. But… They all died. Lives thrown away on the field of battle, just so she could live.

And now…

And now Ryo's going to…

A sickening wave of déjà vu came over her, her experience during the last days of her clan merging with the present day. With Ryo's fight against the demon. And in her horror she imagined the Ronin's death right before her eyes.

"No…"

Sage suddenly reached to the side and grabbed her fist, which was clutching onto her rune unsteadily. "Calm down," he said levelly, tightening his grip around her hand when it shook even more. "Everything's going to be fine."

"No…" Laura breathed out for a second time, slightly moving her head from side to side. "Ryo… He…"

"Ryo's going to be fine," Sage told her, refusing to move to look at her in fear that, if he showed his distress, it might push her into a full blown panic attack, although he couldn't help his hand from strengthening his hold as her arm trembled even more. God what was wrong with her? He never saw her like this before.

"Look, nothing's going to happen to Ryo," he said, trying to sound as confident and boastful as he could in his given situation. C'mon, Sage. Think 'Kento'. And as soon as that thought came to him, he just let his words fly.

"I can't believe that you're even worried about him. I mean, he's done some really stupid things in the past. Like jumping into a massive moving ball of energy and surfing up the shoot of an exploding volcano. But he came out of it alright. And I don't know if I should accredit his success to skills or sheer dumb luck but---"

At this point, Laura was giggling despite herself, and the battle had momentarily stopped, the demon looking on at the pair, confused, while Ryo was glaring indignantly at Sage.

"Sage, SHUT UP!!"

He pretended to look innocent, although he was laughing on the inside at the irony of it all. I never expected Ryo to hear that.

"You're crazy." Sage looked down at the girl by his side, who had leaned against his arm for support when she had started laughing.

He smiled at her. "You okay now?"

Laura pulled away from him with a nod, the remnants of a smile on her lips. But he could still feel her hand quiver slightly, still not able to completely shake the fear that had taken control of her a few seconds ago.

Sage gently squeezed her hand, making her look at him questionably. "Look, I don't know what happened… But you've got to know. You're not going to lose any of us. When this is over, we'll still be here. All of us."

"Do you promise?"

He was surprised by her sudden show of energy, those pale hazel eyes digging into his, searching for an answer. And that's when he realized… what she feared was losing them. Sage knew that her reasons for keeping them out of battle had to do with an experience from before involving her clan, but he never expected this latest mission of hers to have a deeper meaning. She wasn't protecting innocent people from getting tangled in her affairs. She was protecting her friends.

"Do you swear it, Sage?" Laura asked again. "You swear you won't die on me?"

Don't die on her? Now that second question had implied something else. Something… more personal. He didn't know how to react. He wanted to assure her. To put her mind at ease, but when he tried to speak he was completely tongue-tied. Don't die on her? Don't leave… Don't leave her…

Alone…

Sage was getting in over his head, catching a glimpse of a secret even deeper than he thought possible. Don't die on her? he thought, looking back at the young ninja at his side. Laura… what happened back then?

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Been sick for the past four days and all I did to show for it was to write out this chapter in that length of time. ^_^ Been a month now, ne? Hope you guys are still reading. As to when I'll be out with the next chapter, it's hard to say. But you can be looking forward to a lot of action when I do update!! Ja ne!